gems, turquoise, Persia, Iran, Persian turqoise

Houtum-Schindler provides a detailed account of the celebrated turquoise mines near Nishapur in Khorasan, Persia, describing their location, geology, workings, production, and administration. He discusses the principal mining districts and individual workings, the methods employed to extract the turquoise, and the qualities and varieties of material obtained, including differences in color and value. Attention is also given to the organization and economics of mining, the valuation and sale of the stones, and the historical importance of Nishapur turquoise. The paper is an important nineteenth-century primary account of one of the world’s oldest and most famous turquoise-producing regions.